Oman said Monday it accepted 10 detainees from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay ahead of President Barack Obama leaving office, part of his efforts to shrink the facility he promised to close.
The U.S. Defense Department did not immediately respond to questions about the transfer.
Oman’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it had accepted the prisoners at Obama’s request. It did not name the prisoners.
“In consideration of their humanitarian situation, 10 persons have been released from detention and arrived in the sultanate today for a temporary residence,” the statement said.
The Omani Embassy in Washington said it had no other information about the transfer. The U.S. Embassy in Muscat declined to immediately comment.
The sultanate of Oman, on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, previously accepted 10 Guantanamo prisoners from Yemen in January 2016. Oman also took another six in June 2015. Neighboring Saudi Arabia took four prisoners earlier this month and the United Arab Emirates took 15 in the largest-single transfer during Obama’s administration in August.
Oman, ruled by Sultan Qaboos bin Said since 1970, has served as an interlocutor between the West and Iran. It also has negotiated a number of prisoner releases in recent years for Western countries.
Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest country, remains in the grip of a civil war and a Saudi-led military offensive against the rebels — making returning Guantanamo detainees there impossible.
Days earlier, authorities said 19 of the remaining 55 prisoners at the U.S. military base in Cuba were cleared for release and could be freed in the final days of Obama’s presidency.
Obama has been unable to fulfil promises to close the facility in part because of congressional opposition to transferring any of the detainees to U.S. prisons. Congress ultimately banned the transfer of prisoners to U.S. soil for any reason.
Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated Friday as America’s 45th president, said during his campaign that he not only wants to keep Guantanamo open but “load it up with some bad dudes.” That’s put pressure on the Obama administration to find places to send as many of the prisoners abroad as possible this week.
The U.S. began using its military base on southeast Cuba’s isolated, rocky coast to hold prisoners captured during the Afghanistan invasion, bringing the first planeload on Jan. 11, 2002. At its peak, 18 months later, the facility held nearly 680 detainees.
There were 242 prisoners when Obama took office in 2009, pledging to close what became a source of international criticism over the mistreatment of detainees and the notion of holding people indefinitely, most without charge.
A September report released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said 122 of 693 detainees transferred out of the prison, or 17.6 percent, returned to fighting. An additional 86 detainees are suspected of having returned to the battlefield, according to the report.
The majority of Guantanamo prisoners released have been sent to Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
Good! More room to house the Clinton Crime Syndicate. There’s room for at least 630 of them.
Can be new orgy island.
And if we run out of room we can reopen Alcatraz in the Pacific.
Good! More room to house the Clinton Crime Syndicate. There’s room for at least 630 of them.
PRIME EXAMPLE OF Otraitor’s espionage the son of satan committed against America and other world countries.
And oasshole is for america? The idea one of these satan worshippers could have, or were on the battle field to kill americans should have had them executed, instead, the satanic marxist oasshole lets them out, since he didnt close gitmo, (and thankGod only 4 days left in this clowns tenture) why not leave it to the new administration to handle? The president is suppose to put America in a position to win, with isis still in existance, does letting war criminals loose help america? The marxist donkey party keeps crying about the russians, do you think letting terrorist free after catching them shows america strength?
Every one of my posts now goes thru the monitors automatically, why horn? Are y’all marxists or under it control? George soros pulling your strings too?
He’s releasing dangerous criminals to other countries to look good.I wonder how many have made their way back to the US and what their future plans for American citizens are.All part of obama’s plan to destroy our great country.I still can’t comprehend how or when this country got so stupid and allows obama to do as he pleases.There are 4 days to go and I’m terrified but hopefully prepared for his next attack and final blow to destroy our country.
It would be nice if at least one of them would shoot Obungoloid down..sorry Radical Muslim!
They should put B+HRC, Obubba, and Kerry on a skid with a nuke and deliver them from a C130 to Isis.
I was hoping that potus was going with them. He deserves a vacation to the middle east.
He deserves nothing but a rope around his neck!
I think is a terrible act of cowardess to let the worst of the worst prisoners out of Gitmo. This is supposed to be a smooth transition for the Obama to Trump Presidency. He is really putting road blocks up for Trump. Obama isn’t interested in making it easy for Trump to follow him. I wish he wouldn’t stay in Washington D.C. He needs to sit down, shut up and stay out of the NEW ADMINISTRATION.
I still haven’t understood that Obama has the sole power to release these
prisoners without Congress or anybody’s permission. This sounds like
a crime to me. The Pentagon at one time said, no one else would be released.
What happened, When you’re Black and know that the whites will be called racists
you can do anything you want to because of color.
Alot of these people killed American soldiers, civilians, and others and no one
wants to do anything about this. Where is the revenge for what they did? I
really hope that no more are released. Our country’s people have grown weak
and do not care about anything.
It just shows that Obama has no oversight over money, prisoners, and mostly over the presidency of the United States. He does not get the responsibility for a nation and its people. He only thinks of himself and his “legacy” – now he is even hooking onto the new Trump’s healthcare. Ha he only wishes he could get credit for something.
Why Obama insists on releasing terrorists, many of whom have gone on to fight against us again, makes one wonder who’s side is he on in this battle against radical islamists? Is this why he refuses to identify them as such? Radical Islamists?
The ultimate last insult would be to grant a presidential pardon to Hillary … which I feel is nearly a certainty.
What a great “uniter” he has been for this nation! A JOKE! Worst president in our history … hope Trump undoes most of the damage he’s done asap!